On Thursday Tory rebels are expected to support an amendment to the immigration bill calling for restrictions on the Eastern European migrants to be reinstated until 2018.

The move, which is expected to be supported by more than 50 Tory MPs, comes three days after Prime Minister David Cameron gave his first verdict on the immigration levels from Bulgaria and Romania since the start of the year, conceding that they are "reasonable".

Cameron spoke on the numbers coming to the UK from the two countries following warnings last year of a possible "invasion".

But rebel MPs have voiced concerns about the number of arrivals over a long period and want Cameron to add new restrictions to the government's Immigration Bill, which is returning to the Commons on Thursday.

Shadow Home Office minister David Hanson said Labour would support a group of amendments aiming to enable the government to impose further transitional immigration controls on future EU accession countries.

"Today, on behalf of the official opposition, I have signed new clauses 7, 8, 9 and 10, tabled by the honourable member for Sleaford and North Hykeham [Conservative Stephen Phillips] and several Conservative backbenchers, which will look at strengthening future accession agreements in to the EU when they come about," he said, during Home Secretary Theresa May's Commons question session on Monday.

"Given that new cross-party consensus, will the home secretary join us in supporting those amendments and new clauses on Thursday?"

May responded: "He will have to wait and see what happens on Thursday, but I have looked at interest at the amendments which have been tabled."

She told MPs she was "pleased to see that there is indeed agreement across this House that we do need to take action in future in relation to accession countries".